Railroad-gate



K. CHROBAK.

RAILROAD GATE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-8. I919.

1,332,710. I Patented Mar. 2,1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I,

K. CHROBAK.

ammo/m GATE. APPLICATION HLED DEC.8. I919.

Patented Mar. 2,1920.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

anvemtyoz I abto'm e1:

*0 Jill KAZIMIER CHROBAK, OF ROSEMONT, VJEST VIRGINIA,

ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO MIKE SEMERYK, or ROSEMONT, wEsr VIRGINIA.

RAILROAD-GATE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 2, 1920.

Application filed December 8, 1919. Serial No. 343,175.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, KAZIMIER CrmoBAK, a citizen of Poland, residing at Rosemont, in the county of Taylor and State of \Vest Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railroad Gates, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved railroad gate and the principal object of the invention is to provide an improved actuating means for lowering the gate, the actu ating means being soconstructed that it may be operated from the train and will immediately cause raising of the gate upon passage of the train.

Another object of the invention is to provide an operating mechanism for a railroad gate which shall be comparatively simple in construction and comprising a comparatively few parts, all of which will be strong and durable and not liable to easily get out of order.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings throughout which like reference characters designate corresponding parts and wherein,

Figure 1 is a fragmentary sectional view in perspective of one-half of the mechanism,

Fig. 1 is a similar view of the other half thereof, and

Fig. 2 is an end elevational view either looking to the left of Fig. 1 or to the right of Fig. 1

The actuating mechanism for the railroad gates 5 will be mounted upon the ties 6 outwardly of the outside rail 7 of saidtrack. As will presently become. apparent, portions of the mechanism will also extend under ground at the crossing or roadway. The gates 5 are of conventional construction and are pivotally connected with the standards 8 through the medium of the shafts or axles 9. The standards 8 are provided with transverse pins 10 beneath the axles 9 and a spring 11 is partially wound around each pin, one free end of each spring being extended to bear against the under side of a gate 5 so as to exert its force for the purpose of expediting the raising of said gate. This free end of the spring is secured in any suitable manner to said gate whereby, when a pull is exerted upon said end by means of the train operated mechanism to be described, the gate will be caused to lower.

A pair of brackets 12 are mounted upon the spaced ties for each of the ramps 18, which ramps each are pivotally connected to the upper ends of links 14 as at 15, the lower ends of said links being pivotally mounted in the brackets 12. The pivotal mountings for the lower ends of the links 11 comprise shaft-s 16, one of which is extended laterally as at 17 away from the rail 7 and journaled in the adjacent standard 8 beneath the pin 10. A bell-crank lever 18 is fastened upon the outer end of each shaft extension 17.

A suitable flexible member such as a cable 19 is attached to the before mentioned free 'end of spring 11 and extends downwardly from one gate 5 around a guide pulley 20 and then transversely of the crossing or roadway through a conduit 21 where the same is attached to the lower end of the vertical arm of the bell-crank lever 18 as shown in Fig. 1. Another similar cable 22 (see Fig. 1) has one end attached to the free end of the spring 11 of Fig. l and extends downwardly around a guide pulley 20 and then transversely of the roadway through the conduit 21 where it has its other end attached as at 23 to the lower end of the vertical arm of the other bell-crank lever 18. It will thus be seen that cable 19 has one end attached to spring 11 of the gate shown in Fig. 1 and has its other end attached to the vertical arm. of the bell-crank lever 18 in 1, while cable 22 has one free end attached to the spring 11 of Fig. 1 and has its other end attached to the vertical arm of the bell-crank lever 18 in Fig. 1. By this arrangement both gates 5 are simulta neously operated when either one of the ramps 13 are disposed. Numerous devices are well known in the art for automatically depressing the ramps and the same may reside in a wheel 24 depending from the train in the path of the ramp.

The operation of the present invention may be briefly described as follows: Assuming that a train provided with the wheel 24 is approaching from the right of Fig. 1 as indicated by the arrow a, said wheel will depress the ramp 13 and thereby cause swinging movement of the links 14. Such swinging movement of the links 14: causes rotary movement of the shaft 16 which has the extension 17 and also causes rocking movement of bell-crank lever 18 in a direction whereby the normally horizontal arm of the be exerted to effect lowering of the gate 5 of Fig. 1. When this operation is taking place, a slack is produced in cable 23 adjacent the standard 8 of Fig. l and a pull is exerted upon cable 19 by reason of its connection to the vertical arm of bell crank lever 18 of Fig. 1. This pull upon cable 19 is transmitted to the gate 5 of Fig. 1 to cause it also to lower. On the other hand, the reverse operation would take place if the train were approaching the ramp of Fig. 1 in the direction indicated by the arrow Z). Obviously, when the wheel 24- ceases to press the ramp 13, the springs 11 immediately cause the gates 5 to return to the normal positions thereof as shown. It is not absolutely necessary that the springs operate to raisethe gates 5 as said gates may be weighted in the usual manner so as to normally assumea raised position. In this case the springs would merely act to returnthe parts of the actuating mechanism to their normal positions.

From the foregoing description it is believed that the construction and operation as well as the advantages of the present invention will be readily understood and appreciated.

It is to be understood that minor changes may be made in the details of the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the same as claimed.

What I claim as new is 1. In a railway gate structure, the combination of a pair of normally open gates, a pair of rotary shafts each extending from a point adjacent the track to one of said gates, means adapted to be engaged by an operating member on anapproaching car to rotate either of said shafts, bell-crank levers fastened upon said shafts adjacent said gates and normally disposed with one arm depend ing in a substantially vertical position and the other arm projecting forwardly in a substantially horizontal position, cable connections between the free end of the horizontal arm of each bell-crank lever and one of said gates whereby downward movement of said horizontal arm will cause lowering of the gate to which it is connected, flexible operative connections between one of said gates and the free end of the vertical arm of the bell-crank lever which is associated with the other gate, similar connections between said other gate and the free end of the vertical arm of the other bell-crank lever whereby rotation of either of said shaft-s by car actuation will cause lowering of both of said gates.

2. In a railway gate structure, the combination of a pair of normally open gates, a pair of rotary shafts each extending from a point adjacent the track to one of said gates, means adapted to be engaged by an operating member on an approaching car to rotate either of said shafts, bell-crank levers fastened upon said shafts adjacent said gates and normally disposed with one arm depending in a substantially vertical position and the other arm projecting forwardly in a substantially horizontal position, cable connections between the free end of the horizontal arm of each bell-crank lever and one of said gates whereby downward movement of said horizontal arm will cause lowering of the gate to which it is connected, flexible operative connections between one of said gates and the free end of the vertical arm of the bell-crank lever which is associated with the other gate, similar connections between said other gate and the free end of thevertical arm of the other bell-crank lever whereby rotation of either of said shafts by car actuation will cause lowering of both of said gates, and a spring associated with said connections and each of said gates to return the former to their normal positions upon passage of the car and return of the gates to their normal open'positions. V

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

KAZIMIER OI-IROBAK. 

